Eleventh International Conference on The Inclusive Museum

Abstract

PlazaMuseum (Piazza) refers to a communal exhibition space, which encourages simple leisure time in the everyday separating itself from the general information-focused museum trends of dialog, ideologies, and teaching. It helps connect the local community by intriguing them, thus creating a more appealing museum sphere for a wider audience. We ask: Is it necessary to guide visitors, or actively teach them? How can scientific museums become attractive to locals and/or for the disinterested audience? The basic attribute of PlazaMuseum is, that its exhibitions can function as an everyday space, where one can enter without the need for discourse and seeking knowledge, purely for the sake of spending leisure time and it is enjoyable with minimal interaction. This exhibit area rejects the idea that the museum and museologists must present its own ideologies, and teach its audience. It does not try to have a dialog with the visitor, or ask for their opinion, rather it creates an opportunity, a place (’plaza’) for the audience to learn relying on human curiosity and its need for exploration. In this study, I explore a theory, which focuses on the more passive strolling type of visitors and local communities and their connection to local treasures.